Gertrude Stein

A trend is a trend is a trend. And fall's fashion trends are emerging with the daffodils as top designers unveil their collections in temporary tents in Bryant Park in Manhattan's garment district.Poet Gertrude Stein, whose bronze statue has been covered over with canvas to form the models' changing area, might have difficulty defining so succinctly the yards of fake fur and plastic evening dresses parading the runway.Donna Karan was the first powerhouse designer to show in the 800-seat big top with her secondary DKNY line.

When Ernest Hemingway landed a job on the Toronto Star in 1920, it was not unusual for aspiring young writers of serious fiction to spend time as ink-stained wretches in the newsrooms of big city dailies. There they learned their craft under the tutelage of experienced editors and indulged their curiosity about people and places. Not every cub reporter who eked out a living pounding the typewriter keys had Hemingway's keen ear or descriptive flair. But not even a Hemingway was exempt from the daily chore of chronicling the multitude of mundane happenings that are the bread and butter of newspaper work.

WASHINGTON -- The early 20th century produced some of the most creative and daring artists and writers of our age. As social revolutionaries, American avant-garde artists and intellectuals shook the foundations of modern society with artwork that was viewed as immoral, lifestyles that were considered deviant and viewpoints that were looked upon as un-American, if not seditious.Today, one of the most comprehensive looks at these members of the avant garde is on display here in an extensive exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution National Portrait Gallery (through Oct. "Group Portrait: First American Avant Garde," focuses on four leading personalities of the period and their respective circles of peers, through 105 paintings, drawings, sculptures, photographs and rare literary publications.

Last week's quiz on Baltimore's literary heritage generated a lot of interest and very few incorrect answers - the most stumbles came on questions 3 and 5. Folks here really know their authors. As a reward, we'll send a new book to all who submitted answers. Here's a list of answers, with thanks to the University of Baltimore's Literary Heritage Project for supplying much of the information. We're thinking of new quizzes; if you have ideas, let us know. And special thanks to Sally Lemmon, who noted that she's a cousin to Dashiell Hammett.

As the Baltimore Ravens and Denver Broncos get ready for their big playoff game Saturday, there are plenty of opinions about how the teams and cities compare . But in one competition -- based on books -- Baltimore wins hands down. The East Coast city had the advantage of time and history, of course, and in literary matters, that can be a big edge. Denver didn't get its start until the mid-1800s, when word of a gold strike brought settlers to the banks of the South Platte River.

The historic lunchroom at the Woman's Industrial Exchange reopened on Wednesday. It is now called the Woman's Industrial Kitchen, and it's operated by Irene Smith, owner of the popular Souper Freaks food truck. The Downtown luncheon room, famous for its chicken salad, tomato aspic and starched-apron waitresses, had it rough in the past decade, closing and reopening under a string of outside operators, some of whom tried to run it like in the old days, some who didn't. Smith has restored the lunchroom, if not literally, then in spirit.

Everyone else seems to have moved on to other business by now, but David Ruppert is still fixed on the Rita Fisher case. He's still back there with all the grim, wrenching testimony about the abuse and murder of that 9-year-old girl. Ruppert suspects other jurors in the recent trial are feeling the same way."Except," he's quick to add, "I was an alternate juror. I didn't get to vote. They did."Ruppert sat through the two-week trial with three other alternate jurors. They were dismissed before the jury began its deliberations April 28. So Ruppert, for one, never got to say how he felt about the defendants -- Rita Fisher's mother, Mary Fisher-Utley; Rita's elder sister, Rose Mary Fisher; and the sister's boyfriend, Frank Scarpola.

WASHINGTON -- Living in Paris during the 1920s, four American artists -- Man Ray, Gerald Murphy, Stuart Davis and Alexander Calder -- helped to erase the boundaries between the arts and to redefine art itself.Their work is featured in "Americans In Paris," the exceptional exhibit of 103 paintings, photographs and sculptures celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Phillips Collection.In a letter dated April 5, 1922, Man Ray (1890-1976) suggests the innovative spirit that informs his work and most of the work in the exhibit: " I have freed myself from the sticky medium of paint and am working directly with light itself.

EASTON -- Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, they say. What is appealing to one viewer of art may be ho-hum to another. When I saw the bronze gorilla at Bart Walter's display in the sculpture exhibit at the Waterfowl Festival, it was love at first glance. Now I know what they mean by a Sicilian courtship. Boom! A lightning bolt of passion and consuming desire. I had to have it.The price tag put it in the same category as a new, moderate-range automobile. To put things in reasonable context, drive a 1975 car, so it's not extravagant to think about trading up to a newer model.

Alfred Franklin Mason, a retired Evening Sun copy editor who was also an essayist, novelist and book collector, was found dead Tuesday of apparent heart failure at his Rodgers Forge home. He was 84.Mr. Mason began his newspaper career in 1949 as assistant librarian for The Baltimore Sun. In 1955, he was promoted to the financial desk as a copy editor for the afternoon paper.He also wrote "Some Business," a whimsical column that examined offbeat business news. He retired in 1978.A tall, scholarly-looking man with a slightly ruddy complexion, Mr. Mason favored horn-rimmed glasses and dressed in tweed sport coats, colorful shirts, knit ties and tweed caps.